Justin is the Editor-in-Chief at 9to5Toys. For well-over a decade he has covered everything from video games and smart home devices to iPhone and MagSafe accessories, EDC gear, and just about everything in between. A professional audio engineer/producer, he also specializes in home recording, microphones, digital audio, and streaming gear. See something cool out there? Developing the next viral Apple gear accessory? Or just want to talk deals? Contact him directly at justin@9to5mac.com for tips, pitches, and more.
Sony has just announced an official price drop coming to PlayStation 4 bundles everywhere. This will be a temporary drop from February 12th through the 25th that will see PS4 Slim bundles starting at $249.99.
Everyone wants to capture hilarious videos/photos of their pets and the My Talking Pet iOS app makes things even easier (and more hilarious). Even better, it is now completely free on the App Store, down from its usual $1. We haven’t seen it go free since September of last year.
If you haven’t figured it out yet, along with some fancy image tracking and a nice audio recorder, this app will have your puppy talking like never before!
Whether it’s the NES Classic or one of the plethora of other vintage emulation consoles out there, there are plenty of ways to play classic games these days. Unfortunately, you’ll likely need a number of little boxes if you’re looking to make use of all those old cartridges and PS1 titles. But now, a new modular gaming console known as RetroBlox is aiming to bring all your vintage titles to one handy box.
Xbox One gamers are in for a treat today. Rockstar has just announced that Grand Theft Auto IV and Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City (The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony) are now playable on Microsoft’s latest gen machine via that whole backwards compatibility thing Sony seems to have forgotten about.
Up to 20 minutes of continuous suction. Trigger releases instantly.
Battery power is only used for cleaning.
Motorized cleaner head cleans all floor types.
Stiff nylon bristles remove ground-in dirt from carpets.
Carbon fiber filaments remove fine dust from hard floors.
Bristles cover its full width, allowing edge-to-edge cleaning.
No cord to unravel, plug in, or drag around, restricting your reach. You can quickly and easily clean when you need to.Trigger releases instantly. Battery power is only used for cleaning. Up to 20 minutes of runtime. The wand quickly detaches for handheld cleaning. Dyson tools fit directly to the machine.
Anyone who grew up with an NES or SNES will likely have fond memories of the Castlevania series. Once a staple in gaming, it has since fallen out of popularity in recent years, despite remaining as one of the most cherished franchises in history. While we have seen some interesting takes on the series in recent years with Lords of Shadow, a new Netflix show is looking to take the mantle.
(Update 2/10 6:00pm): We have now updated our Valentine’s Day deal roundup with more flowers, jewelry apparel and goodies…
Valentine’s Day 2017 is just around the corner now, so you had better get a move on finding that perfect gift for the special someone in your life. Amazon’s Valentine’s Day Gift Store is always a good place to start, and if you’re thinking big ticket items like jewelry and iPads, it is always nice to find things on sale.
Down below we have collected some of the most useful Valentine’s Day sales from across the web covering everything from flowers and delicious treats, to apparel, perfume and even the best iPad, iPhone and Apple Watch deals available right now. We will be updating this list throughout the week and weekend, so be sure to check back for more ideas: Expand Expanding Close
Today only, as part of its Gold Box Deals of the Day, Amazon is offering up to 50% off Jewelry from Michael Kors, Kate Spade, Kendra Scott, Dogeared, Fossil and more just in time for Valentine’s Day. Everything in the sale ships free for Prime members or in orders over $49.
DiscountMags has a pair of very notable mid-week deals running right now. You can grab a 3-year subscription to Wine Enthusiast Magazine for just $6.99 with free delivery using code 9TO5TOYS at checkout. That’s easily one of the best deals we ever see on this title. It regularly sells for $30 a year at Amazon, DiscountMags, and direct from Wine Enthusiast. If you’re in to wine, or just want a classy looking mag for the coffee table/office, you’ll want to jump on this deal. It is available to new and existing customers for renewals.
While we still have a long list of discounted gift cards from earlier this week including Jiffy Lube, Lowe’s, Toys R Us, AMC and more, Amazon has a few notables of its own today. You can grab 20% off at Dominos, Krispy Kreme and Coldstone Creamery using the below promo codes. It doesn’t get any better than 20% on these, so be sure to grab them while you can. You can expect free digital delivery across the board and we have added a few more GC deals that have popped up on eBay this morning as well:
As you likely already know, we are giving away a Special Edition NES Classic bundle with a number of extra goodies this week. And today we have a sweet deal on an extra controller. While we are already packing in an extra controller in the bundle (along with some extensions), only one very lucky winner is going to get their hands on it. Anyone who already has one of Nintendo’s reissued mini consoles will certainly appreciate today’s wireless deal:
Amazon is offering the wirelessNyko MiniBoss for NES Classic Edition controller for $14.99 with free shipping for Prime members or in orders over $49. That’s $5 or 25% below the regular price, the lowest Amazon has offered it for and the best we can find. Rated 3.2/5 stars from over 100 customers.Keep in mind, many of the less than stellar reviews are complaints about the wireless range (listed at about 15-feet), which may or may not be an issue for you. You can get more details about it right here and down below.
The App Store classic Lane Splitter is now free. After sitting at $1 for almost 2 year straight years, the twitchy top down racer can now be yours for nothing. Over the years it has amassed a 4+ star rating from over 44,000 gamers.
We have a long list of gift card deals today courtesy of trusted dealer PayPal and SVM Gift Cards on eBay Daily Deals. Today’s best options are in the list below and either ship free to your front door or come via email delivery from PayPal. But you will need a valid Us PayPal account to purchasethose options.
(Update 2/10 3:00pm): Ladies and Gentleman…@thekarachikid is the lucky winner of our special NES Classic Zelda Edition Console and amiibo bundle!!!! The winner will be contacted shortly with all the details…
9to5Rewards is the best giveaway program on the internet. All you have to do is be an active member of our community and you get free stuff! Rewards is making its way over to 9to5Toys for the very first time this week with what might be the coolest giveaway I have ever seen:
Sony is finally adding official external hard drive support to PlayStation 4. Since release, gamers have been perplexed with Sony’s lack of support for more storage and considering how big these games/updates are, it’s about time.
The new feature is part of an upcoming update, but in the meantime, beta participants can give it a test run starting today. It will allow for externals up to 8TB in size. Along with the introduction of external storage management features, apps stored outside your machine will be accessible via the Content Launcher.
Vanskytek (99% positive in the last 12 months from 3,250 ratings) via Amazon is offering the Vansky Flexible LED Strip Motion Sensor Night/Bed Light for $17.99 with free shipping for Prime members or in orders over $49. Simply use the “View promotion details” pull-down menu on the listing and hit the redeem button to get 34% off the listed price (looks like this). This is the lowest we have tracked on this particular item. Rated 4+ stars from over 200 Amazon customers.
While it is a great motion activated light strip for under the bed at night time, it can essentially be installed anywhere that functionality would make sense.
After sitting at $3 on the App Store for the past year or so, the colorful puzzle game Swapperoo is now available for just $1. That’s matching the lowest we have ever tracked. The addictive puzzle game features 38 “freeform stages which play out differently every time” on top of 75 handcrafted challenges and an endless mode. That’s a whole lot of puzzler for $1. Rated 4+ stars from over 300 gamers.
The specialty photo manipulation app, Facetune, is now available for $3. Not since 2015 have we seen it go for any less. It regularly sells for $6 and carries a 4+ star rating from nearly 7,500 users.
Professional photographers and graphic designers constantly photoshop models to perfection, and now so can you! Without the expensive price tag or complicated tools, Facetune gives you the ability to retouch and add artistic flair to selfies and portraits with ease, from the convenience of your iPhone.
The super rocket battle-car soccer game, Rocket League, will soon be coming off the big screen and directly on to your living room floor. No, you will not get to drive real rocket powered sports cars in your house, or anywhere for that matter. I’m talking a set of those awesome, vintage pull-back race car toys.
Walmart is offering the Ozark Trail 14-In-1 Multi-Tool for $3.87 with in-store pickup or free shipping in orders over $35. Walmart recently announced free 2-day shipping on orders over $35 with no membership fees and you can get all the details right here. That’s $10 or so under Amazon’s price and the lowest total we can find from a trusted retailer. Rated 4+ stars from over 65 Walmart customers.
Along with the included sheath, it has “standard pliers, long nose pliers, wire cutters, three different screwdrivers, a knife, bottle opener, can opener” and more.
Colorware is offering 9to5Toys readers a nice deal on its customizable MacBook and MacBook Pro with (or without) Touch Bar skins. Starting at around $25 and going all the way up to $100 or so depending on the material you choose, you can get 10% off your order using code 9to5Toys during checkout from now through February 17th. It looks as though the free shipping threshold is set at around $30 or so. If you spend more than that it will ship free, otherwise it will run you about $6.
National Gift Card (99.4% positive from over 1,000 ratings) via eBay Daily Deals is offering a $50 Dominos Gift Card for just $40 shipped. That’s up to 20% off your next order online or in-store. While National Gift Card may not have loads of reviews just yet, we have had our eye on its gift cards deals for a while now and have had no issues/complaints regarding delivery, etc. Head below for more GC deals.
Here are some more discounted Gift Cards still live at eBay and Staples:
It won’t cost you a nickel to play Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege this weekend. From February 2nd until the 5th, the strategic shooter will be free-to-play on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC (uPlay/Steam). This is not a slimmed down demo version either, it offers “all of the maps, modes, and Operators present in the full version, giving you the full Siege experience over the free weekend.”
If you want to buy it after the free period is over, you can do so for “50% off”, according to Ubisoft. We can only imagine that will mean 50% off whatever the price is on the service you are using at the time. So just keep in mind the game is only $20 Prime shipped on Amazon and GameStop right now.
The “enchanting zen” puzzler series, Quell, is seeing some nice price drops on the App Store today. Quell+, Quell Reflect+ and Quell Memento+ are available for just $1 each. While we have seen them all go free at some point, outside of a Free App of the Week nod, it has been years since that happened. They are regularly listed at $2 and $3 with a combined rating of 4+ stars from over around 12,000 users.
Spigen makes a wide range of affordable and highly rated accessories for iPhone, iPad, Android devices and more. Today, we have some item-specific promo codes on three newly released items from the company including a mini power bank and a pair of car chargers. Everything listed below ships free for Prime members or in orders over $49.
Spigen Essential Mini Portable 3350mAH Power Bank $8 (Reg. $12)
Using code AA9FDJ4F at checkout
Most powerful “mini” portable charger on the market.
Adds over one full charge (14 hours talktime / 90 hours music playback) on most phones
Mini, compact design makes it easy to carry and convenient to use
Build in Overvoltage/Overcurrent/Leakage and Short-Circuit protection unit
Charge faster and smarter than others (IC Chip), automatically detects and delivers the optimal charging current for any connected device
Spigen Essential USB Quick Charge 2.0 Dual Car Charger $8 (Reg. $13)
Using code ENJPEXCP at checkout
Smart port 2.4A output + Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0 output. Featuring a second powerful 5V/2.4A (12W) USB port with [Smart Port] technology, identify and provide full-speed charging for any smartphone or tablet.
Built-in charging circuitry fully protects devices from any short-circuiting, over-heating, over-charging, and over-currents.
USB Car Charger Blue LED light indicates when charger is operational.
Compact Design: One of the industry’s smallest ever USB car chargers.
Use Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0 Technology: charges compatible devices up to 75% faster than a standard charger.compatible models.
Spigen Essential USB Dual Car Charger $6 (Reg. $9)
Using code YPPX9UP8 at checkout
Newly designed with new housing materials for a more compact fit.
Two 2.4Amp (4.8Amp total) USB outputs can charge up to 2 devices.
USB car charger’s blue LED light indicates when charger is operational.
Charge risk-free without any risk of overheating or damaging your devices: Protection from over-current, over-charging, and short-circuiting. (Smart IC Chip)
Compatible with any device that can connect to a USB port and majority of mobile devices (Apple, Android, tablets, etc.)
A dedicated group of fans/developers have worked over the past eight years to create Mega Man 2.5D, and its finally here. Not only has the rag-tag team introduced some awesome 2.5D visuals across the entire single player campaign, but it also features co-op for two-player action.
While many Mega Man fans have purchased all of the classics at some point or other, 2.5D is mixing things up a bit. To keep things fresh for the single player campaign, the developers have handpicked a series of stages and bosses spanning the entire history of the series. We have some gameplay videos below along with the brand new release trailer and the hideous box art to match the original:
Secret of Mana is one of the most beloved RPGs of the SNES era, so when Square Enix put in on iOS, and then later added MFI controller support, it was great news for vintage action JRPG fans everywhere. Fortunately enough, Square has decided to put it on sale again for just $3.99, down from its usual $8. That’s matching the lowest price have ever tracks on the excellent iOS port.
Nintendo had a great 2016 with the mini NES Classic and it is continuing to ride the wave into 2017 with Switch and Zelda Breath of the Wild. Despite it still being somewhere between very difficult and absolutely impossible to get your hands on a NES Classic or even a Switch pre-order at this point, excitement for Nintendo is at an all-time high. We have seen loads of accessories hit the market for Nintendo Switch, new games and even a batch of Breath of the Wild amiibo, but there is no sign of that illusive NES Classic Edition anywhere. At this point, it feels like we are more likely to see Nintendo unveil the SNES Classic. As exciting as that would be, there are still many gamers out there eagerly awaiting the opportunity to brandish the coveted NES re-issue.
Well, you’re not going to believe this…but we got one and we are giving it to you!
Not only do we have the NES Classic mini, we have the NES Classic Zelda Edition Bundle. It includes the console, an NES Classic Wired Controller, two NES ExtendLink Extension Cables and a special edition Zelda Tech Triforce Backpack. As if that wasn’t enough, we have decided to add in both the Mario Modern Color and Mario Classic Color amiibo! I know, insane right?
One (incredibly) lucky winner will get a chance to own this one-of-a-kind 9to5Toys NES Classic Special Edition bundle ($150+ value). We will be revealing all of the details on how to do so this Saturday (February 4th). Be sure to follow 9to5Toys on Facebook and Twitter so you don’t miss your chance to win this amazing package.
Walmart is now introducing free 2-day shipping on orders over $35 with no membership fee required. Even items not marked with the new 2-day shipping label (seen below) will “qualify for free 3-5 day shipping on orders over $35”. That’s down from the usual $49 free shipping threshold we are accustomed to and puts the retailer, more or less, in-line with Best Buy’s policy.
This is great news for avid Walmart shoppers and it looks as though the new 2-day shipping is appearing across a number of different product categories. Even some third party sellers are getting in on the action. While it is expected to see this kind of offer hit the usual household items like “baby necessities, pet products, food, cleaning supplies and beauty favorites”, but we are also seeing it on larger ticket items like games, LEGO sets, other electronics and well, pretty much everything. more details below:
Amazon is offering its Prime members the Parrot AR. Drone 2.0 Quadricopter Power Edition for $169.99 shipped. That’s $200 under the original price, $100 or so below the usual listing on Amazon and the best price we can find. It is rated 3.5/5 stars from over 160 Amazon customers with more than 65% of them leaving a 4+ star rating. More details below.
Best Buy has one of the most notable deals on the Xbox Elite Wireless Controller we have ever seen today. You can grab a refurbished Elite controller for just $89.99 shipped. This is about $50+ or so under the regular price for a new one ($43 under Amazon) and the lowest total we have tracked for an Elite gamepad. Now we did see them drop to $120 or so and, in some cases, as low as $110 with gift cards and more. But all of those options were over the holidays and limited at best. Rated 3.8/5 stars from nearly 1,950 Amazon customers.
Compatible with Xbox One and Xbox One S. Compatible with Windows 10 via USB or the Xbox Wireless Adapter sold separately.
Swap thumbsticks and D-pads for game-changing accuracy and speed.
Fire faster with Hair Trigger Locks.
Achieve greater control with interchangeable paddles and rubberized diamond grip.
Customize your experience further with an easy-to-use app on the Xbox One Console.
Colorware is offering 9to5Toys readers a 
Amazon is offering the 
Well, you’re not going to believe this…but we got one and we are giving it to you!
